"So you're saying you and the others were trying to kidnap her because you want to achieve immortality using her blood," Mark stated, summarizing what the man had explained. But internally, he wondered, 'How dumb and desperate do you have to be to try something like this?'
Mark glanced at the unconscious woman, still out cold, then looked back at the terrified old man's face.
"I know for a fact you're not the magic user. If you were, I'm sure you would have thrown some spells at me. So tell me, who's the caster?" Mark asked, his tone deceptively calm.
The old man hesitated. Mark placed his hand on the man's leg and began squeezing, his eyes closing as if to say this wasn't a joke.
"Okay, okay! His name is Kessler," the old man gave up the answer. "He's a doctor at Kessler Clinic."
"You should consider yourself lucky to be alive," Mark said, placing his hand on the old man's shoulder. "If I find you doing something like this again, I'll send you to hell myself."
The old man gulped in fear.
Mark stood and looked outside the church. No one was there anymore. The cars had all left minutes ago.
"Hmm, did they just abandon her?" Mark muttered. He looked back at the unconscious woman, the supposed vampire. 'No wonder her beauty is unnatural. She's too beautiful. I need to take her somewhere far from here for now.'
He lifted her, carrying her in his arms as he flew away. His thoughts began to wander.
'This is interesting. I thought vampires were weak to sunlight. I guess vampires work differently in this world.'
Now he had to figure out where to take her. He didn't want to bring her to the mental institute to deal with the root of the problem just yet, and he didn't want her caught in the crossfire.
Mark began searching for a nearby place to wait. He decided to lay her down on the rooftop of a building and wait for her to wake up. That way, he could finally go deal with Dr. Kessler afterward.
While he waited, he sat beside her and began singing and humming a song he had just remembered from his past life. His legs swung idly as he passed the time.
. . . .
A few minutes later, the beautiful woman began to stir awake. The first thing she heard was someone singing and humming a tune she didn't recognize. It was something wonderful to her. Usually, she woke up after being unconscious on a table, or worse. This time was different. She smiled without realizing it, remembering that a hero had intervened.
"One, two, three. One, two, three."
"Hmm, hmm, burning soul."
"Rescue fire, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm."
Mark noticed she was finally awake. He smiled, though his expression was hidden by the mask. His eyes remained calm.
"You're finally awake," Mark greeted her with a hint of amusement.
She held her head, still dizzy, but managed to sit up. She realized she was on top of a building. Her eyes studied his masked face.
"What about the dead?" she asked directly.
"I already ripped them apart," Mark answered. Then he questioned the validity of the information he had gathered. "Are you really a vampire? And how did you get shot in the first place?"
"I was trying to protect the people," she said, giving her reasoning. She pressed for more information, sensing Mark knew more than he had let on. "Do you know what Jonny was planning to do?"
"The old man? If you're asking about him, he and the others were planning to use your blood to become vampires. Which I think is stupid," Mark said, offering his opinion freely.
"Others?" she muttered to herself.
Then she remembered. The wife. The woman who had attended the supposed funeral. Her husband was still alive, the same Jonny, the old man Mark had beaten badly enough that he likely wouldn't move for a while.
"What about Maria? Did you see her?" she asked quickly.
"Who's Maria?" Mark was clueless. He hadn't asked about Jonny's personal life. It hadn't seemed important. "Everyone at the funeral went home."
"She might be in danger." The woman got up quickly. Her clothes instantly transformed into a red sling bikini. Mark was caught off guard by the sudden change and immediately looked away.
She noticed his reaction and smiled, letting out a small giggle. She wanted to tease him but decided against it for now. Someone's life was at stake. She spread her wings, large and bat-like, from her back. Mark was surprised to see them emerge so naturally.
She took off, and Mark followed her toward Maria's home, just in case. She glanced at him as they flew. "Did you get anything else from Jonny?"
"He was working with the caster. Goes by Dr. Kessler, at the Kessler Clinic," Mark answered.
When they arrived at Maria's home, there was no one there. No noise. No movement. Mark used his hearing, but the house was completely empty.
"Let's go to the Kessler Clinic. I know where it is," she said, unwilling to waste any more time.
Mark nodded and followed her lead. She knew the location. When they arrived above the Kessler Clinic, the building was surprisingly large for a clinic in a small town. Mark dropped straight down into the front yard, which was full of roses.
She was shocked at how casual he was about it, but she followed suit, folding her wings back into her body. Mark walked right up to the front door and kicked it down.
"KESSLER, COME OUT! YOUR LIFE IS OVERDUE!" Mark shouted at the top of his lungs, making sure everyone in the building heard him.
She was slightly stunned by his sudden outburst. Then a voice crackled through the building's speakers. It belonged to an elderly man.
"This is Doctor Kessler to all personnel. Preserve the vampire and kill the hero."
From that moment on, waves of undead, workers from inside the building and outside, began closing in on them. She readied herself for a fight, but Mark was already focused, filtering through the noise to find Dr. Kessler's voice.
"There's a car approaching this place. Take care of it. I've already found the caster," Mark said. Then he blitzed forward, ignoring the undead entirely.
"Wait—" But Mark was already gone from the main area. She was now left to face a horde of undead trying to kill her.